The New York Yankees and Cinncinnati Reds have agreed in a trade sending prized closer, Aroldis Chapman, to the Yankees in exchange for a package of four minor league prospects, including: Eric Jagielo, Caleb Cotham, Rookie Davis and Tony Renda.
Chapman is far and away the biggest name in the deal, arguably the best closer in baseball, posting a 1.14 WHIP to go with a 1.63 ERA and 15.7 K/9 last season, which was on the low end of his career numbers. The 27-year-old is in his prime and could be a free agent after 2016, but faces potential punishment...

One year after trading Jason Heyward for Shelby Miller, the Atlanta Braves have traded their young pitching stud in a new package for a promising young player and prospects. Miller, 25-years-old with three years of team control left, was sent to the Diamondbacks in exchange for outfielder, 25-year-old Ender Inciarte, pitching prospect, Aaron Blair and former number one overall shortstop, Dansby Swanson.
For the Diamondbacks, it’s a deal which sets up the front of the rotation for several years. After signing Zack Greinke last week and being...

The Chicago Cubs played musical chairs with its middle infield in the past few hours, signing 34-year-old Ben Zobrist to a four year deal worth $56 million and trading away 25-year-old former All-Star, Starlin Castro, to the Yankees for Adam Warren and Brendan Ryan.
For Chicago, the deal went beyond age. The Cubs are one of the youngest teams in the game and were clearly looking for veteran leadership, which will be found from a former player of Manager, Joe Maddon, in Zobrist, who was a key acquisition for the Royals en route to their first World...

With the ink of David Price‘s new contract still drying in the front office of their arch rival, the New York Yankees face multiple options for how they will proceed this winter. Winter Meetings will be in full effect shortly where the position player market is likely to heat up after the Big Three of pitchers (Jordan Zimmerman, Price and Zack Greinke) are all likely to be off the boards by the end of business on Friday.
Fortunately for the Yankees, free agent pitching is not its biggest need this winter. Ivan Nova is likely to be tendered...

The New York Yankees may have struck out at the trade deadline but plan to impose its biggest transaction with itself by calling up top prospect, Luis Severino, to debut on Thursday. Severino, will be added to a rotation suddenly with a lot of question marks surrounding itself.
CC Sabathia has reverted back to major struggles, most recently getting shelled by Texas on Thursday. Ivan Nova and Masahiro Tanaka have been inconsistent and Michael Pineda will be out at least a month with a strained forearm. Severino will take Pineda’s spot in the...

It’s about that time of year where minor clues start to be handed out like early Easter eggs during spring training and it coincidentally coincides with another annual Yankees’ tradition: Pitching injuries. Chris Capuano is the first to go down, straining his right quad and leaving the door open for any of: Adam Warren, Scott Baker or Bryan Mitchell to have to make at least one start during the first half of April.
What we know about the rest of the team so far is this: Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner are likely forming a lefty-lefty...

Much has been made of the health in the Yankees’ starting rotation, from the front-end arms of Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda to the depth potential in Ivan Nova and CC Sabathia. New York will be going into the regular season likely with a rotation different from its powerful bullpen which should have depth and high upside, but similar to its offense, potentially better than last year but still full of question marks.
Each pitcher has a different issue they will be dealing with for the start of the season with varying levels of risk and...

It’s been two days and Yoan Moncada is still a Boston Red Sox player. This didn’t turn out to be a cruel joke Hal Steinbrenner tried to pull to literally see if his Father might roll over in his grave. And as the past 48 hours have come and gone, it’s clear the Yankees did not have a suitable plan for how to approach an offer for the Cuban teenager.
All winter long the Yankees have operated intelligently and with understandable restraint. They didn’t overspend on veterans in free agency who won’t be around or in their...

The New York Yankees will need a lot to go right in order to be contenders for the 2015 season. CC Sabathia and his recent weight gain will have to stay healthy and effective. Michael Pineda and Mashiro Tanaka will likely have to avoid major injury, while Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez try to capture glory days one last time.
While bit players like Chris Young and Garrett Jones are specifically on the 25 man roster to provide depth in case of injury, there are four players who aren’t even on the 40 man roster who may offer a long-term impact...

The New York Yankees have won 27 world championships spread out across 92 years. Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Yogi Berra, Joe Dimaggio: The team in pinstripes has no shortage of greatness from greatest to simply “Hall of Famer”. Fifty three different players have played for the Yankees and sit in Cooperstown and 26 of them entered with the Yankees as their primary team.
This isn’t a lesson in statistics, it’s a lesson in just how special the Yankees’ past has been. Before the 1990’s dynasty, the Yankees had 17 players...

With pitchers and catchers due to report this weekend and James Shields firmly planted on the Padres’ roster, the majority of the heavy and impactful lifting is complete for the 2015 winter. The New York Yankees used the past three-and-a-half months trying to get younger, trying to sure up the defense, trying to cover both holes on the left side of the infield, trying to sort out the second base competition and trying to rebuild some of the innings lost with Hiroki Kuroda‘s departure.
It was a long to-do list to not only maintain what...

If there’s one underlying theme to the New York Yankees’ winter, it’s been improving the defense. Whether that means addition by subtraction with Derek Jeter‘s retirement, keeping together another strong bullpen lead by strikeout machine, Dellin Betances, or simply getting younger and more athletic, it has all contributed to the same cause. Keeping runs off the board.
Last season, the Yankees’ average age was 30.2, trailing only the Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies for oldest team in the majors. Of course, this...

It seemed like such a dismal failure, but the New York Yankees actually finished as the second best team in the American League East last season. We discovered: Masahiro Tanaka, Dellin Betances and what Brett Gardner‘s power looks like. We said goodbye to: Brian Roberts, Alfonso Soriano and, by the end, Dave Robertson and Hiroki Kuroda. By the end, we were excited about: Jacoby Ellsbury, Michael Pineda and Chase Headley and disappointed in: Brian McCann, CC Sabathia and Carlos Beltran.
There were a lot of moving parts, ups and downs and most...

Reports on Monday indicated the New York Yankees were planning on suing its highest paid player in the event he had any modicum of success. Ladies and Gentleman, only Alex Rodriguez can create those headlines.
We live in a Yankees’ Universe where they don’t pick up the phone for an employee who was once considered the next “face” of the franchise, even if it’s allegedly just an apology. We follow a franchise where if Alex Rodriguez hits six home runs, there could be legal repercussions. There’s a team who owns...

The New York Yankees have had issues developing offensive farm talent for the better part of two decades, at least in using that talent to help its own roster. Much has been written about the potential prospect battle at second base but it quickly had cold water tossed on it when Stephen Drew was brought back in the mix.
While the roster has trended significantly younger this winter, New York still has performance and health concerns and the most promising offensive talent at the higher levels of the minors in years. Let’s look at which of...

With Brian Cashman seemingly fully in control of personnel decisions, the New York Yankees have continued a calculated approach towards a youth movement this winter. Signing Cuban super-prospect, Yoan Moncada, would be the crown jewel of the off-season and make him immediately the top prospect in the Yankees’ system.
Each transaction thus far has been an obvious attempt at making moves for 2015 and beyond as opposed to a one season franchise attempt, something the Yankees had been attempting for over a decade prior. Moncada would be the “finishing...

Finishing 2014 with an 84-78 record meant a distant second place in the American League East for the Yankees. It also meant four games back from playing in a one game playoff which produced a team who would finish two runs from a World Series title. While four games is surely not a death sentence, New York would have to pass a minimum of three teams this season to make it happen and hold back the Toronto Blue Jays, who finished one game worse.
All of that is said, without the possibility of a team like the Boston Red Sox, owners of dropping the...

The New York Yankees re-signed 31-year-old, Stephen Drew, for a one year, $5 million dollar deal with potentially 1-2 million in incentives on Tuesday. Drew will be expected to play second base and provide insurance to Didi Gregorius at shortstop.
The veteran, Drew, hit a measly .162/.237 last season but missed part of the season before signing with a team and there have been rumors of alleged personal matters which may have contributed to his weak numbers. With the move, Brendan Ryan, the previous slick-fielding backup shortstop, would appear to...

It’s been an off-season of saving money and getting younger for the New York Yankees. This isn’t some sort of alternate Universe but it is a clear philosophical shift by the front office to go in a different direction, possibly with an Alex Rodriguez reminder and CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira contracts fresh on the conscience.
The fact of the matter is if the Yankees kept going the direction they were headed, it could have become mid 1980’s ugly and Brian Cashman likely realized that. As a result, Didi Gregorius, Nathan Eovaldi,...

The New York Yankees became creative in its search for starting pitching on Friday, trading 28-year-old swing-man David Phelps and 31-year-old Martin Prado for 24-year-old, Nathan Eovaldi, backup 1B/OF, Garrett Jones and 22-year-old pitching prospect, Domingo German, ranked 20th in the Marlins’ farm system and last seen pitching at the A level.
The trade at face value seems like a head-scratcher for New York. Phelps is a homegrown and proven commodity for pitching depth, Prado was arguably the best all-around hitter down the stretch and Eovaldi...

If you’re not careful, you might miss it. Gradually, the Chicago Cubs, six years without a legitimate contender (a 97 win team in 2009 who would become a first round knockout), five years without a .500 record and owners of back to back last place finishes, are rising. One might look at the standings and see 73 wins in 2014, 12th in the NL in runs, 13th in OBP, 13th in ERA and owners of 20 blown saves and struggle to see the silver lining. But it’s there, and on Wednesday it had a bow on top with a “Happy Holidays” greeting...

Being born in New York and growing up in NJ, I never really had a choice to root for any team except the Yankees. My family has actively been attending games at Yankee Stadium for close to 80 years and I’ve followed Baseball since the very end of 1993, when my dad started watching games with me when I was a six-year-old.
It wasn’t until 1995 where a few things stuck out to me. I remember Don Mattingly being the first player I actively rooted for. I remember the first ever wild card race with the Yankees beating the Blue Jays to clinch...

For nearly seven minutes straight, America’s best version of an agenda-pushing, media shill threw caution into the wind by arguing about something he entirely made up right before opening his mouth.
In case you were busy doing…Anything else, Keith Olbermann has been back with ESPN and has his own show. He starts shows with opening monologues and used one on Tuesday night to absolutely blast someone who has been near and dear to the majority’s hearts for the past two decades.
Let’s get a few things straight right off the bat:...

Shortly before the 4:00PM Eastern time trade deadline, the Yankees managed to give its infield a makeover in exchange for a stopgap, designating a veteran for assignment and one solid prospect. New York parted ways with Kelly Johnson in a straight up deal for Red Sox middle infielder, Stephen Drew, designated Brian Roberts for assignment and then traded 23-year-old catching prospect, Peter O’brien, for utility player, Martin Prado, from the Arizona Diamondbacks.
For the Yankees, the deals make a lot of sense just as Chase Headley‘s...

Chase Headley is the perfect type of low-risk, high-reward the Yankees target in all facets of Front Office action, whether it’s the MLB draft or the trade deadline. With Headley’s ability to play third every day or pop around corner infield and outfield, the Yankees added versatility, a glimmer of high upside and a young(er) bat, all at the price of a sell-high non-prospect and an A ball non-elite pitcher.
Those are the deals the Yankees need to make if they want to appease public perception and avoid crippling the future by trading...

The New York Yankees are perfectly mediocre. Sitting at 47-47 more than halfway through the season, New York sits in third place right in the middle of the AL East facing a trade deadline two weeks away generally used as the barometer for where teams find themselves in terms of competing for the remainder of the year. It’s widely known the Yankees have lost four out of its five opening day starters.
It’s perfectly clear Brian McCann and Carlos Beltran, half of the major purchases of the off season, have under performed. We know New...

If there’s two things being treated as a given from Yankees’ critics, it’s that they have a weak farm system and did not address the bullpen this winter, particularly with the departure of Mariano Rivera. While the Yankees dedicated hundreds of millions to a new starter, a new outfield, a new backstop and some infield stop gaps, the biggest signing on the reliever side of the house might have been Matt Thornton, a lefty specialist with a straight fastball who couldn’t quite cut it in Boston last season.
But as he so often...

The New York Yankees spent a lot of money this winter on covering up a lot of flaws for a team who overachieved to win 85 games. And if you were to look back at the 2013 Opening Day lineup and compare it to today, you would see just how far the team has come.
Only Brett Gardner was in the lineup this season and last season during the first game of the season and four hitters from last season aren’t even in the major leagues anymore. An additional two are now backups on the Yankees’ bench.
Suffice it to say the Yankees have come a long...

While Derek Jeter begins a long process of saying goodbye to Major League Baseball, the Yankees are in no position to say goodbye to its shortstop of the past 20 years. A few years ago, everything was set up.
New York had just drafted Cito Culver with its first pick, Eduardo Nunez was showing signs of being an everyday shortstop at the Major League level and Jeter was showing no signs of slowing down, except of course to his right.
Even headed into last season it seemed Nunez was taking a temporary stop at the hot corner as a bandaid to Alex Rodriguez,...

With their most turnover in five years, the Yankees have an especially important spring to monitor. Unlike the last few seasons when New York was perfectly moderate in its winter dealings, the Yankees went on a spree this off season, needing to add some stability before a spring full of auditions and new opportunities.
While Jacoby Ellsbury, Brian Mccann, Masahiro Tanaka and Carlos Beltran are certainly new to the Pinstripes, their respective roles were solidified before March ever rolled around. Three of them will be in the lineup through at least...

The New York Yankees walked away with the prized possession of pitching Free Agency on Wednesday, but they weren’t the only team with its sights set on Masahiro Tanaka. Final rumors indicated the: Diamondbacks, White Sox, Cubs, Dodgers and Astros were all in on the sweepstakes until Tanaka made his final decision.
Since none of them have him on its roster, here are a few logical alternative moves for each ball club:
Arizona Diamondbacks
Kevin Towers clearly wants and needs starting pitching. The NL West was easily the worst pitching division...

The Milwaukee Brewers made a statement this winter and they did it much in the same way as last winter. One of the last Free Agent pitchers to sign before spring training last season was Kyle Lohse, and now he will be joined by the newest member of the rotation, Matt Garza.
Garza was signed to a four year, $52 million dollar deal just one day after the top starter in Free Agency, Masahiro Tanaka, signed for over $100 million more with the New York Yankees.
On the surface, this looks like a great deal for the Brewers as they picked up a solid starter...

Tampa Bay has been quietly making moves this offseason, adding Heath Bell and Ryan Hanigan in December and adding Logan Forsythe yesterday from San Diego. After reaching an agreement with Grant Balfour they presumedly have added a new closer.
Balfour, who was previously signed by the Baltimore Orioles for $3 million more, had his contract voided due to a bad physical with controversy surrounding the results. From one AL East team to the other, Balfour has found his home on the Rays instead.
The 36-year-old Australian native had a stellar 2013 campaign,...

After months of speculation and competition, the team who may have expressed interest first is the team who ended up with the prized Japanese import. The Yankees, long rumored to be in on the righty, signed Masahiro Tanaka to a seven year, $155 million dollar contract on Wednesday morning.
Reportedly, the Diamondbacks, Cubs, Dodgers and Yankees were in on it in the end, with the Red Sox and Astros watching from afar, but it was New York who created an ideal scenario for the highly touted pitcher. The deal includes an opt out after four years, meaning...

Derek Holland is expected to be out until midseason for the Texas Rangers and he’s blaming his pet dog for his injury. Holland, who has torn cartilage and required arthroscopic surgery on Friday, says he injured himself on his stairs at home when his dog accidentally clipped him.
Coincidentally, Holland’s dog’s name is “Wrigley” named after the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs, a notoriously “cursed” franchise.
Holland had this to say on the incident: “He was running up the stairs and clipped me,”...

The San Francisco Giants hope to regain dominant form in the bullpen this season, a strategy which helped win them two World Series in three years. San Francisco signed: Kameron Loe, J.C. Gutierrez and Sandy Rosario, all to minor league deals with an invitation to spring training.
Loe traveled around the majors last season, finding success in none of his three Mariners, Cubs, or Braves’ locations. The 32-year-old reliever somehow allowed 11 home runs in 26.1 innings, helping contribute to a 7.09 ERA.
Some of his numbers are likely bad luck...

The Baltimore Orioles are in the final stages of what surely has to be described as a disappointing offseason, the low point being when it balked on a Grant Balfour contract to replace Jim Johnson.
Balfour is widely considered one of the top three relievers on the Free Agent market, with Fernando Rodney and Joaquin Benoit, the latter of which already signed in San Diego.
The Orioles traded its former closer, Jim Johnson, earlier this offseason to sign Jemile Weeks, who will compete for the second base spot, adding depth left by the departure of...

The Winter’s biggest blockbuster player has been posted and Major League Baseball teams will take the next month or so to decide if they want to negotiate with Masahiro Tanaka. Before evaluating who has the best chance of landing the prized 25-year-old Japanese import, it’s important to set a few ground rules and eliminate a few possibilities right off the bat.
Chances are almost half of baseball will make a $20 million dollar bid, even if most of them stand little to no chance of actually landing Tanaka. Teams like the: Boston Red Sox,...

The Yankees and Tigers appear to be on two separate missions this winter, but they could come together for one deal. No, the Yankees won’t be getting a starting pitcher they still need and the Tigers wouldn’t be receiving power to help fill the void of Prince Fielder‘s departure to Texas, nor would they get a late inning arm to replace Joaquin Benoit (and setup for Joe Nathan).
Instead, New York and Detroit have been rumored to be in talks about swapping two out fielders, in this case, Brett Gardner and former Yankees’ prospect,...

The New York Yankees are fresh off only its second missed postseason in 19 years and much like in the winter headed into 2005, looking to play catch up with its arch rival Red Sox, who will enter the postseason as defending champions. They have already done great work to significantly upgrade the team.
Bringing back Hiroki Kuroda insures at least three viable starters in the rotation and a surplus of arms to make a fifth starter. They still need one more front-end starter to enter an elite category.
On offense, the Yankees have undergone a full...

It’s mind-boggling to be a Yankees fan and to watch the sport as a whole closely. Being a Yankees’ fan is like nobody ever being happy for you even though you work hard everyday because your Dad had a major connection for you when you graduated from college. Sure, you work as many hours as your co-workers, you’re ambitious, you have goals and your bosses love your work ethic, but your friends all hold a grudge and despite everyone’s flaws, they all choose to look at yours because you were given an opportunity they don’t...

Just hours after talks reportedly broke down between Jay Z and his camp and the Seattle Mariners and their president, Seattle has agreed to sign Robinson Cano to a 10-year, $240 million dollar deal which will tie him for the third longest contract (with Albert Pujols) in league history.
Cano was previously allegedly offered nine years and $225 million and Jay Z and company asked for 10-years and $252 million, creating initial rage in the Seattle Front Office. Apparently, cooler heads prevailed and the two parties met in the middle.
With this deal,...

It becomes increasingly difficult to play second fiddle and leave $50 million dollars on the table in exchange for bright lights and team legacy. Those are the exact odds the Seattle Mariners are trying to play by allegedly offering Robinson Cano a 9 year, $225 million dollar contract. Early reports indicate Seattle is conscious of staying “$50 million” ahead of the Yankees’ offer which likely stands around seven years and $175 million dollars.
The Yankees and Mariners are taking very different approaches towards courting Cano...

On the heels of a posting fee maximum agreement, Yozo Tachibana, president of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, told newspapers prized pitcher, Masahiro Tanaka, may not be posted after all.
After weeks of negotiation, both American and Japanese professional baseball leagues agreed on a $20 million maximum bid on future players planning to be posted from Japan to MLB.
While preference of teams making maximum bids is still being worked out, the new rules may have already made an impression.
Tanaka, easily the best alternative to a team in need of...

When the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Brian Wilson the day before the trade deadline in 2013, it was mostly to take a flyer on the once dominant closer. Wilson delivered better than anticipated following a Tommy John surgery in April of 2012, hurling just one earned run and a 21-to-6 K to BB ratio to compliment his 19.2 innings in both the regular season and playoffs.
For Wilson, it was a return to the top of the reliever game despite pitching in the role of setup man, a role he will likely reprise behind Kenley Jansen again in 2014.
From a financial...

The Texas Rangers added some veteran presence to its deep farm system today, signing relievers, Jose Contreras and Nate Adcock, and outfielder, Bryan Peterson, to minor league deals. The most notable name of the trio is Conteras’, who had a successful 2010 relief campaign with the Phillies when he pitched to 3.34 ERA in 56.2 innings.
Now 42-years-old, Contreras is nothing more than a minor league reclamation project, most recently spotted floating between farm systems for Pittsburgh and Boston and posting a respectable 3.00 ERA in 33 AAA innings.
The...

Now that Brian McCann is under contract in the Bronx, this week has brought additional rumors to the remainder of the offseason. The following is a review of some of the current rumors swirling around the Bronx.
The New York Yankees have reportedly made an offer to Hiroki Kuroda. Kuroda turned down a $14.1 million qualifying offer prefers one year deals.
It’s very likely Kuroda either accepts a one year deal around $16-18 million, returns to Japan (a worst case scenario for New York) or takes more money to go on the west coast closer to his...

In order to prove to yourself the New York Yankees should pass on Robinson Cano, it takes one story from five years ago.
I still remember the winter after the 2008 baseball season. Frustration over so many injuries, disappointment in the farm system and the ultimate feeling the Yankees were just one or two parts away from becoming champions again despite an 89 win season and missing the playoffs.
After signing: CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira, the Yankees were able to do things like shift Phil Hughes into a bullpen role, use Andy Pettitte...

Ervin Santana is reportedly seeking a $100 million dollar contract when he signs his next deal, likely using that number as an opening to negotiation and trying to capitalize after a revival 2013 campaign with the Kansas City Royals.
Of course, in order to capitalize on a major contract, it takes one team to actually make an offer and it’s unlikely any of the 30 Major League teams will want to give Santana nine figures on top of losing its first pick.
Santana is a year older than Anibal Sanchez when he signed his 5/80 contract with the Tigers,...

Three years ago Don Mattingly was just starting out in Los Angeles and Rick Renteria was a bench coach in San Diego.
On Thursday, Mattingly started negotiation talks for an extension and Renteria took over the helm in Chicago.
Both managers have high aspirations to manage their teams to success the next few years, but they’re starting from opposite ends of the spectrum.
Mattingly is in the final year of his contract after his option picked up when LA won a division series.
Though the Dodgers have improved by at least four wins each of the...